Our friends Ashley and Aron moved from NYC to Davis, California, almost two years ago. They live with their children—Hudson and Skyler—in a midcentury modern house that feels quintessentially Californian. (How much do you want to beam yourself there?!) Here’s a peek inside…

LIVING ROOM:

On buying a house sight unseen: We had planned on renting for our first year in California, but, while still living in Manhattan, I spotted this house for sale online. We called Aron’s parents (who live in Davis) to see if they could rush over to that day’s open house. We made an offer a few days later, having only watched an e-tour (many times over). It was terrifying! When we finally saw it in person, it felt smaller than I had expected. But as we walked around, I felt the jitters subside. We turned to each other and our shared expression was “Yes! This is going to be awesome!”

On favorite things about the neighborhood: People in Davis are really friendly. Our friends, who just moved here from Maryland, joke that the various grocery stores are having a contest to see who can be the friendliest. (As in, “Please let me help you get your bags out to your car!”) And from March to October, the Farmer’s Market holds a Wednesday picnic night with live music and pony rides. Everyone comes out to sit on the grass.

On how to maintain a (light-colored!) home with small children: We try to be realistic about messes and spills (they’re going to happen). I also tried to choose durable furniture. The leather couch actually looks better with wear, and spills wipe right up. The white plastic chairs are fantastic, too—you can clean crayon marks right off. And the cork floors are super forgiving!

On favorite places to shop: We do most of our shopping at Room and Board, Ikea, West Elm, Target and the odd flea market. Design Within Reach is a favorite source of inspiration. When we were in New York, I loved looking around ABC Carpet & Home—which felt similarly aspirational. I’m always on the lookout for good design, be it on Etsy or Amazon, or at a traveling market like Renegade.

On spending time in the yard: I love eating dinner outside after a hot day, when it finally cools down and the light grows golden. Lately, I’ve been sitting outside with baby Skyler while our toddler Hudson chases the dog and looks for bugs. He loves to bring me things he finds—this winter, bringing in the Meyer lemons and making lemonade was one of his favorite activities.

On NYC vs. Davis: Since moving here, I’ve become more content to stay in. A weekend in our yard feels like an activity, whereas a weekend spent indoors in New York would have felt like a wasted opportunity. I do miss living among so many great restaurants, but the upside is that we focus more on the produce we buy at the farmers’ markets. Ultimately, when we first moved here, we anticipated driving to San Francisco or Berkeley at least once or twice a month to get our city-fix. I’m so glad they’re nearby, but I don’t find myself craving those excursions to the degree I thought I would.

On throwing pool parties: There are always a few 100-degree days in Davis, and most weekends last summer involved having friends over to swim and sit in the sun. My favorites were when we would let the afternoon roll into evening with a simple grilled meal and bowls full of grapes with little hands to grab.

On destination shopping: We had been looking at outdoor furniture in New York, and we realized nearly everything we liked was made in Indonesia. We were about to go on a month-long family vacation to Bali, from where we would fly to our new home in California, so it seemed only natural (and kind of awesome) to look for furniture there. We had most of our outdoor furniture, and some indoor furniture, made in Bali and it arrived by freight a few months later.

On that amazing wood headboard: We can never move! It weighs a ton! We bought it on our vacation in Bali. There were a few shops that sold giant slabs of a fast-growing hardwood called Saur, and we went to each one trying to imagine how we could somehow incorporate something into our home. Once we decided on a headboard, we had to take a bit of a risk that we could fit it into our house. Thank goodness it worked out—or the seven guys who helped bring it inside would have killed us!

On morning rituals: Hudson has the OK to Wake! clock, which lets him know when it’s okay to start calling for us (he’s always the first one up!). Aron goes to get him dressed while I feed Skyler or catch a few more minutes of sleep. Then Hudson comes running into our room, books in hand, enthusiastically shouting “Good morning, Mommy! I got book!” while crawling into bed beside me. I’ll never get used to waking up early every day, but I do love those first morning hugs and kisses.

…and nighttime rituals: Before Skyler, I would have said my ideal night would be to take a few moments to relish the calm and quiet, and then bring the baby-monitor to the jacuzzi to look up at the stars or spread out on the couch and start whatever show we’re binge-watching at that moment. But since Skyler was born, ‘calm and quiet’ has felt pretty elusive!

On honoring a piece of the past: Back in New York, Hudson slept in a closet—with a mini crib, mobile and wall of graphic animal wallpaper. When we moved, the wallpaper stayed behind, but I kept some of the leftover roll to frame in Hudson’s new room to make him feel at home.

On choosing toys: Like many parents, I started out hoping my kids would have only well-designed toys of the all-wood, hand-knit variety. (In the words of Tina Fey, those “beautiful wooden educational toys that kids love…if there are absolutely no other toys around and they have never seen television.”) But it turns out I’m generally happy to encourage anything that he gets excited about and that fosters his curiosity. Though I admit: I sometimes remove the batteries!

On tips for keeping things neat and organized: Purge often, clean with a basket in hand, and give everything a place. The last one seems obvious, but it wasn’t apparent to me until I found myself cleaning up Hudson’s room after raucous play dates how much that third bit helps. He has all of these bins and their contents are fairly straightforward (stuffed animals in one, trains in one, everything else small in one). It’s ten times easier to put his room back together now because I don’t have to spend time thinking about where everything should go.

On decorating kids’ rooms: I tried to start with neutral elements and avoid a single theme. I figure I’ll let them steer that course. Hudson’s room has one wall covered in cork and then painted white. The idea is that we can easily add his own artwork and, eventually, let him rotate in images of things that interest him—whether that be dinosaurs, rockets or a rock band.

On cozy moments with a newborn: There was a TED talk in which Alison Gopnik talked about how babies have a hard time not paying attention to all the stimuli around them. I always think about that. When I rock Skyler to sleep, I often find myself stroking her forehead to help her learn to just close her eyes.

I love your house! We live in Chico and are about to remodel our mid 1970’s “Eichler clone” house. I am thinking of doing cork floors. Yours look wonderful. If you put them in, can you tell me the brand/type?

Just came across this link and can’t believe how fast my own kids are growing! Anyway, saw some more source questions:

–Abbie: Shelves in nursery are indeed from Ikea
–Kitchen counters and backsplash are both the original 1964 material—laminate? Not 100% sure, but we haven’t updated. One day I hope to go with an all-white corian or cesar-stone.
–Erin: Chad DeMasi in Davis was our agent. But we actually found it using the Multiple Listing Source and contacted the selling agent directly.
–Lindsay, Amber, Nicole: Thank you, the large cowboy print is a photo of Richard Prince’s photo of the marlboro ad cowboy. A project by Josh Stanley using Prince’s appropriation–http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/2000.272/
–Victoria: You can see the beach scene painting in this post: http://hitherandthither.net/2015/08/07/skyler-at-18-months/
–Miochan: Wrote a post about shopping abroad http://hitherandthither.net/2015/03/03/shopping-abroad-bringing-back-furniture-bali/

Would love to know about the cork flooring? Do you know the color and the source? Just what we are looking for!

June 9, 2016 6:05pm /

Abbie says...

I know this post was from 2014…and I read it then (and loved it then too!) but came across it again today via Pinterest & noticed the shelves in the nursery…where are they from? I read ALL of the comments to see if this was already answered but I don’t think it was. This house is pretty much my dream. Way to go, Ashley & Aron! Thanks for always featuring such inspiring family interiors, Joanna! :)

Do you have a backsplash in the kitchen? If yes… What material? And what are the counter tops? Absolutely lovely home… Redoing my atomic ranch and want to keep the vibe like yours. Thanks in advance ?
Jamie

Hey there!! Wowzers this house is pretty darn great. Is there anyway she can give us the real estate agency she went with? Or did she use zillow? We’re looking to relocate from the bay area to someplace where we can actually buy a house for under a million zillion dollars.
thanks!

Well I was just sitting here you know, obsessively pinning the photos of the back yard, thinking “this looks a lot like our vegetation!” Little did I know this home is ten minutes from where we live! Love everything about it. It’s the perfect Northern California home.

i’ve been searching for reviews of the restoration hardware sorensen sofa (especially regarding comfort due to the height of the seat back), to no avail! how do you like yours? both you and your husband seem to be tall, do either of you regret the purchase? is the sofa more of a showpiece rather than a comfy lounger? may i ask which color and leather type yours is? thank you!

Hi! Just saw that there were some unanswered qs on sources–The laquer cabinets in the nursery are from Ikea (Besta with gloss doors). The table and stools in my son’s room are Ikea and Target, respectively. And the clock in the kitchen is… um… Ikea also.

Wow what a lovely home. I have never seen this type of home in my life. Thanks for sharing this beautiful post with us. Everyone has a dream that how they will decorate their own home with beautiful furniture and home bars.

Hey, I live in Davis too! It’s a beautiful town, and is the perfect juxtaposition of college-y and family-friendly (with a strong hippie vibe). I’m so happy to see it featured on your blog, and their home is lovely! Fun fact: Davis is also considered one of the most bicycle-friendly cities in the world!

Hi Joanna! What a stunning home. I especially love the backyard! Wow. We live in Davis and LOVE it (though the summer heat can be a bit much at times:). It’s really a perfect town, with a fun college town vibe and also super family-friendly. My husband and I adore the fact that after our babysitter pops over to play with the munchkins, we can be at a neat pub or restaurant in just five minutes. Plus, there’s bike trails galore all around town, a super beautiful agricultural setting, and SF, the beach and Tahoe are all close by. Come visit your friends and check it out! ;) xo

Wow, thanks again for all the generous comments! Some more source answers:

@Mrs. Habit–glad you chimed in. I’m sorry I’d forgotten source, but yes the teepee is from House In Habit https://www.etsy.com/shop/houseinhabit@Stephanie Abdon–The house is by a local builder named Streng and designer Carter Sparks (an Eichler contemporary). Some article links:http://www.hitherandthither.net/2012/04/a-new-old-address.html@Tabitha–I’d love to learn about that painting over the white sofa, too. We bought it at a Davis estate sale and the belief is that the painter studied at Davis (with Wayne Thiebaud), but they weren’t sure. @two pounds–the map is a topographic US map (but oddly missing Hawaii and Alaska) from School House Electric. @Pear and @Rafiks777–see answer above regarding the cowboy print. The photo above the leather couch is by Jamie Street. She shared it on Instagram and it’s printed inexpensively on blueprint printer. The framing, however, is not cheap–but there’s a local shop here that had large frames made (they’re around 70×30 or 40 inches) and then used a lighter alternative to glass so they wouldn’t weigh a ton. Lots of light reflection is only downside to the plexi. @Rafiks777–the corner floor lamp is from Room & Board, but I know the one you speak of at Target. We wanted to order it and see if it would be right for another room, but they won’t sell it in California because it doesn’t take the efficient lightbulbs the state requires! @Gosia–Such a pretty book! Excited to look at it more. No stylist or borrowed props in this case. All ours. Thanks! @Nelly Chung–the floors in all the rooms except for the dining and master are cork. The floors in those other two are Walnut. Previous owners installed them and we love the cork. Easier on feet, clean easy, stay more temperate. BUT they do fade with sun exposure. (I guess wood does too, but…)

I love everything! Can you please tell me what kind of floors are in the kitchen and what type of hardwood is in the dinning room/bedroom? I am looking for something similar and it looks perfect. Thank you!

so nice to see the book MAPS, its by a couple of Poles, my kids have it (in our native Polish) and absolutely love it! Beautiful pictures, plenty of interesting bits on various countries: what’s more to love! I didn’t know there’s a version in English too.ps. the house is a beauty! Are all the pieces the family’s belongings or was the house styled up a bit before the photo session?

I just moved away from Davis after finishing my graduate degree. I miss Northern California and can’t wait to get back. Also, it is true, the people at the Nugget are the nicest of any grocery store I have ever been. I miss their cheese selection and juice bar.

I follow Ashley on IG and have been hoping for a whole-house tour! This is exactly how I imagine every home in California to look, haha. Really not my personal style, but I find it still very beautiful and inspirational.

i keep coming back to look at these lovely images. i had a couple of them pinned before and now it makes sense that they are all in the same house. anyway, this house is the epitome of what my style is in my head, if i could ever achieve it in reality! well done to them and now i’m off to check out her blog!

oh yay! i love her blog! my husband and i are talking about moving to northern cali and i’ve been following her blog for a while just for the inspiration to go to awesome places. so nice, love their home.

Holy heck! Is it Neutra? I got the joy of housesitting/subletting at a professor’s house and his dad had worked with many famous architects. I spent the summer poring over “The Complete Works of Neutra.” ADORE this house…thanks for sharing!

Thanks again! And love hearing from so many fans of Davis!@Zoby-Check the Seminyak post in the linked Bali travelogue on my site. I tried to talk a bit about where we shopped there or in the comments there. Wish I’d kept a better list. @lauren.willauer–I believe the common name is Potato vine. It’s awesome. Fast-growing, hardy, and flowers year-round. @Elle–We understand it to be a sustainable, fast-growing hardwood called Suar (Saman) and we hope we did a good job making an ethical purchase. I checked the Wood Database & it’s not listed as threatened (as much old growth is).@Megan/13bees–Thank you! Nice to hear!

It all looks so cozy and homey – like a great place to live and grow up. Except for the headboard…I think I’d have nightmares sleeping next to a slice of the last remaining old growth on Earth, knowing I’d contributed directly by purchasing it. What a shame. No doubt it’s gorgeous, but simply unthinkable.

The world is SO small. Once I saw this home was in Davis I figured I must know the owners somehow (small town) and turns out I know Aron’s parents. How did I not know about hither and thither? What a great blog! Thanks so much for featuring it, Joanna! I love finding out about my own backyard via NYC ;)

hi ashley! we met new years 2013 in the palm springs rental house we shared with j+a. you’d mentioned that you’d just bought a house without walking through it. though I could hardly believe the guts it would take to do that at the time, now it is very, very clear why. I have serious backyard pool envy. gorgeous!!!! megan

Davis is lovely! I live in Sacramento, just up the road and love love love it. After spending a few years on the East coast, there’s nowhere I’d rather be. Living in California, I take the sunshine, space, backyard BBQ’s and beautiful landscape for granted sometimes! Davis is a fantastic family town and their farmer’s market is beautiful!

Oh Ashley! So happy for you and your family. It seems like forever ago when I last saw you at the book party at Isabel’s! AND a new little one congrats! Your home is stunningly beautiful and so peaceful looking. I actually have family in Davis – such a beautiful area. Best to you! xoxo Jill Parrella Vaughn (aka TerraSavvy – although it’s changed!)

LEGIT POST! I grew up in an Eichler in Walnut Creek, Ca (and went to school in Davis!) Now I live in the tiniest studio in the Lower East Side with my boyfriend, and though I share your true love for New York City, I miss home intensely and can definitely see your family living very happily in somewhere like Orinda or Lafayette California (where there are also lovely mid century modern homes).

Thank you so much, Joanna! And these comments are so nice–thank you!! @Meredith H Conry–the photograph is actually a photo of a famous photo (of an infamous photo). Josh Stanley’s photo of Richard Prince’s photo of the Marlboro cowboy. @Kim–that painting is by Peter Shoemaker. Got it at the Alameda Flea. If anyone knows anything about this CA artist, I’d love to hear! @ shalandarj–Those Snake plants are very hardy and used to drought conditions, so you don’t have to water too much. Those ones have done great in there. You could try rocks at the bottom, under the soil or a slightly smaller plastic insert with a drain hole hidden inside? Good luck! @Augusta Wilson–I wish I had a name. It’s probably a few different ones, we would have to keep going and paint-matching. I think Remodelista had a feature on best white paints?Thanks again, everyone!

I love her blog and love her house. Her taste is really lovely. I especially love all the plants. They all look healthy. How does she do it?Oh, and that coffee table. I want it. Wish it weren’t from Bali. Thanks for the awesome house tour.

Joanna, I can’t believe it. I had stumbled upon Ashley and Aron’s blog a while ago and it stuck in my mind as a blog that would be fun to dive into, though I guess I forgot to bookmark it. The other day it popped into my head, but the only thing I could remember was that it was a couple who had moved from NYC to somewhere in California! I spent a while trying to find it yesterday but gave up… and then today you post their house tour! Did you read my mind?? Thank you! Can’t wait to fantasize about taking a round the world trip with my future husband and baby…

Ashley and Aron’s home is beyond gorgeous. I love reading Hither & Thither and it’s fun to see all the pictures of their beautiful home in one place. They have such wonderful taste!

As someone who has only lived in the Midwest and East coast, I look at the palm trees behind their pool and just sigh… the vegetation is so different in California and someday I would love that change of scenery myself :) It seems like a great place to live.

Gorgeous home! Joanna, I wonder if you guys have considered the Denver area for a big move west. It’s lovely out here – we live in Golden, a small town just west of Denver, and it’s such a wonderful sense of community and connection to the outdoors. Now that we finally have Trader Joe’s in the area, I am convinced we’ll never move. :)

Loooove this. Did she happen to mention what shade of white paint she used (and from which company)for her walls? My husband and I are moving into our first home, and choosing that perfect shade of white has been quite the challenge. xo

I knew that sofa was from Restoration Hardware!! I am totally coveting one. This family has my ideal lifestyle lol… hopefully we will soon make it a reality! Having our own pool would be amazing. I am totally expecting you to move to California soon, Joanna! ;)

I live in Davis and love it, I am so excited to see this post! This lovely home is SO Davis :-) I really agree with them that when I moved here I anticipated needing to leave to visit the Bay to be entertained, however I never want to leave or move! Totally agree that a weekend in my (much less nice) little house and garden feel like an adventure.

If Ashley or Aron are reading this – I have been dying over those modernica planters for a while but… no drain hole?! Have you been successful with all types of plants in the planters? Any advice on hardier types? I have had the worst luck with pots with no drain holes… would love the feedback!

Inspirational! Love the simple, paired-down, electric mix of styles! Doesn’t look too-over-designed. Where did your friend get the photograph/painting of the cowboy/clouds in her dining room? Love it! Want it!

I grew up in an Eichler home like this. In the 50s and 60s he was on a building spree in the Bay Area. I think Steve Jobs grew up in one too!

They are lovely and so iconic! The characteristic feature is that the back of the house is always floor-to-ceiling glass. He wanted these homes to feel like the outdoors were an extension of the house.

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